Chocolate, caramel candies made in Kentucky may be contaminated with hepatitis A, FDA warns

01/09/2019

Bauer’s Candies Chocolate or Caramel Modjeskas purchased after Nov. 14 should not be eaten, the FDA said.(FDA)

Certain candies made by a company in Kentucky could be contaminated with hepatitis A, a highly contagious infection that typically affects the liver, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said in a recent warning to consumers.

Bauer’s Candies Chocolate or Caramel Modjeskas — marshmallow candies dipped in chocolate or caramel, the FDA said — are subject to the warning.

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The FDA is “advising consumers not to eat and to throw away any Bauer’s Candies Chocolate or Caramel Modjeskas, purchased after November 14, 2018 because a worker in the facility tested positive for hepatitis A,” the FDA said, though noted neither it nor the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have received any reports of illnesses associated with the candies at this time.

The FDA is working with Bauer’s Candies on a voluntary recall, the agency added, adding the candies were primarily sold through QVC and the company's website.

While the risk of contracting hepatitis A is low, the FDA advised consumers who purchased the affected candies to consult a doctor, especially if they are not vaccinated against hepatitis A.

The liver infection is caused by the hepatitis A virus, according to the CDC. The virus typically spreads when a person eats or drinks something “contaminated by small, undetected amounts of stool from an infected person,” the health agency explained.

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Hepatitis A can cause the infected person to be sick for “several weeks," the CDC said. Hepatitis A can cause liver failure and even death, typically in those who are 50 years of age or older, though that's rare.